Tormentuous Bloodletting with Nicola

Now, normally I don't mind acupuncture and bloodletting. I mean, I do it voluntarily, mainly because it's (mostly) relaxing and (generally) not too painful and I do feel better afterwards.

But...

Today, I went to the acupuncture clinic with Nicola, whose shoulder was aching after overdoing it a bit in rock climbing. I've just got a naggy left ankle and right knee (old war wounds) and was sick of periodically favouring one or the other. Using a mix of Korean, English and miming, Nicola and I explained to the doctor what our problems were. Thinking we would just be in for some pin-sticking and a bit of bleeding, we were slightly surprised when he picked up a paper and started reading to us about bee venom.

I believe his exact word were something like, "The injection of bee venom is extremely painful."

Right.

So, we were taken to the pin-sticking room, where, to our chagrin, they decided to bleed us first. I had two (very ouchy) spots on my ankle stabbed and bled and a spot on my knee, while Nicola had a dozen places over her shoulder and back done. Fortunately, we were able to giggle and grimace each other through it.

And then, our kindly doctor arrived with a syringe.

I looked at him with shock and awe.... to which he replied, "No bee venom. Um... mumble in Korean... hong-ah."

He then injected me repeatedly with the mysterious syringe. Laying back on the heated marble table, I laughed to Nicola that this felt like every time I go to the bank and have to sign 6 pages of contractual Korean, without understanding a word. It's just such an issue of trusting completely that whatever is being done to you is not going to harm you that much.

The nurse then arrived with Nicola's syringe and this one was the dreaded bee venom... which she took like a trooper - even though it was, yes, extremely painful.

As we went on to the pin-sticking, then electrocution and heat lamp portions of our treatment, I still kind of wondered what I'd been injected with. "Hong-ah" (which is the closest approximation that I can come up with) sounds an awful lot like the Korean word for skate (like the flat fish thing, not the hockey equipment thing).... will need to do more research on this, methinks....

With our wounds freshly taped up, we hobbled off, with Nicola scheduling another treatment in a few days, and me wondering how and why I've been dragging my friends (Jen, Ty, Nic) to this clinic -- misery loves company? Love to share the pain?

Anyway, happy first day of spring... if you're in Korea, you are probably enjoying the lovely mild temperatures and buds ready to burst on the trees. If you're in Canada, here's hoping that you can shovel yourself out from under that pile of snow before we have to contact the authorities.